Time after Time
by FriendlyneighborhoodSatan
Summary: Time Traveler!Steve AU. In 1945 Steve Rogers' mother died. Her last wish had been for his childhood neighbor and caregiver Howard Stark to send him somewhere safe from the chaos of war. However, Steve hadn't expected for Howard to build a time machine, and that 'somewhere safe' would be the year 2014. Now, future Howard and his grandson Tony have to help Steve adjust. Stony AU
1. Landing

In 1945 when Steve's mother died, her last wish had been for him to be safe. He vividly remembered her begging his neighbor and childhood caregiver Howard Stark to take him somewhere, anywhere to keep him away from all the chaos. Steve suspected that by that she meant somewhere where he was incapable of enlisting to fight in the war. Not that he would ever be taken anyway, due to his severe asthma.

For a while after that, he'd lived with his best friend Bucky's family, who welcomed him in open arms despite his worries that he'd be a burden. Nevertheless, he was happy at Bucky's. It gave him an excuse to be around his friend, and he felt he was useful there. After three months, just when he'd begun to settle in to his new life, Howard Stark returned with a solution to his mother's wish. He claimed he'd found a way to send Steve somewhere where the war wouldn't be able to touch him. Somewhere where things were more 'progressive' and 'mature'.

It turns out, however, that he didn't plan to send Steve to a far away place. He planed to send Steve to the future. According to Howard's logic, he'd send him to when the war was over, for his own safety.

Well Steve certainly didn't feel safe now, crouched in a small red capsule tumbling and rolling somewhere in what Howard had called the 'time vortex'. He clung to the seat, knuckles white as the so-called time machine turned over and over, taking Steve's stomach with it. He felt his pocket to make sure his inhaler was still there, in case he had an attack in the machine. Next to it, a folded copy of his birth certificate and photos of himself and his family as 'proof' of who he was. Steve bit down on his lip, knowing that it would be an awful idea to throw up in such a small place, but nauseous all the same. He didn't know how long he'd been in the capsule. It felt like hours at some points, mere seconds at others. But finally, he landed.

The red capsule landed with a jolt, before settling into absolute stillness. Steve opened the door cautiously, only to see a dark-haired man staring quizzically at him. Steve crawled out of the pod, studying the man with suspicion. He didn't look much older than Steve, maybe in his early twenties. "Hi." Steve said awkwardly, getting to his feet and holding his hand out for the other man to shake.

The dark haired man stared at it skeptically. When it was apparent that the other man wasn't going to shake hands with him, he dropped his hand down, and released the man's gaze. He took the opportunity to look around for the first time, and take in his surroundings. As he expected, he hadn't moved at all. At least not spatially. He was still in Howard Stark's backyard.

The only thing that appeared to be different was the fancy, if a bit rusted swing set in the corner of the yard. Steve cleared his throat, looking back at the dark haired man only to find him glaring suspiciously. "I'm Steve." He said, once again holding out his hand. This time, the other man took it. "Tony" he said finally, voice flat and unamused. "Right. Apologies…Tony. For landing in your yard." He said awkwardly, biting his lip nervously.

Tony's eyes softened a bit, glancing back at the machine. "Yeah, it's fine. The grass will live." He said drily. "Where did you come from?" he asked, although it was more of a demand. "Brooklyn." He replied quietly, not wanting to disclose the details of his travels. "If you don't mind me asking…what year is it?" he asked Tony. The dark haired man raised an eyebrow. "Jeez, how much did you have to drink last night?" he asked, sounding almost impressed. At Steve's blank look, he cleared his throat. "Sorry. Just…you kinda have to be pretty drunk to forget the year." He said. "Which is?" Steve prompted.

Tony smirked at him. "It's 2014, of course." He said


	2. Adjustment

Steve blinked in shock, staring at Tony. 2014? That couldn't be right. Howard had promised to send him to when the war ended, not a whole nother century. "2014?" he asked. "You're sure?"

Tony stared at him with a mildly amused look on his features. The little smirk reminded Steve so much of Howard. He didn't know how he'd never noticed it before, but Tony looked just like him. Which made sense, of course. This was still Howard's house.

"Right. I need to see your…grandfather?" he asked, unsure as to what relation Howard was exactly to this guy. Tony gave him a look of surprise." You know my grandpa?" he asked. "The guy hasn't looked up from his weapon work since the 50's." he commented. "How the hell could you know him?"

Steve sighed. "Let's just say…we're old friends." He said, hoping that his answer would suffice. It didn't. Tony was looking at him expectantly, waiting for him to explain further. "Howard sent me here from 1945." He said. Seeing the amused confusion on Tony's features, he backed away slowly, sensing the other man was a few seconds away from throwing him in a mental hospital. "So wait…you're Steve Rogers?" he asked.

Steve nodded slowly, unsure where this was headed. Tony broke out into a grin. "I'll admit, I didn't think you were real." He commented, much to Steve's confusion. "He always talks about you. His friend that he sent forwards in time. His proudest achievement. My dad thought it was bullshit, because you never showed up." He explained. "But damn, here you are." He said.

Steve smiled. "I suppose I am, yes. And I want to hear all about Howard's stories later. But now, I need something to eat." He said. Tony looked as if he'd just remembered he'd left the stove on. "Oh, right. Sorry. Come on inside." He said, holding his hand out for Steve. The blond boy cautiously took Tony's hand, allowing him to drag him into the house through the side door.

The Stark's house was huge, and lavishly decorated. Steve stared in shock as Tony lead him to the kitchen. Or rather, dragged him there. He yanked open the large shiny fridge, pulling out two beers. "Want one?" he asked with a smirk. Steve shook his head. "No thanks. I'm not 21." He said. Tony laughed. "I didn't think you were." He replied with a smirk. Steve still shook his head. "I'm not much of a drinker." He said. "Suit yourself." Tony replied, shrugging and opening one of the beers he was holding. He set the other one back in the fridge.

"So are you?" Steve asked awkwardly. "Am I what?" Tony asked. "21." Steve replied. The dark haired man sighed. "22, actually. How 'bout you, blondie? You can't be more than 18." He said with a smirk. Steve blushed. "I'm not. I'm 17, actually. And don't call me blondie." He grumped. The dark-haired man laughed. "Right, sorry." He said, although from his smirk Steve could accurately say that Tony wasn't sorry at all.

"So do you have any real food, or just beer?" Steve asked with a small smirk. Tony laughed, going back to the fridge and retrieving frozen pizza. "Yeah. America's favorite food." He said with a smirk. Steve rolled his eyes, but took a slice of pizza. "Pizza's Italian, actually." He replied. Tony rolled his eyes. "Whatever. You take things too seriously Rogers." He said with a smirk.

Steve sighed. "You sound like Bucky." He muttered, more to himself than to Tony. Finally, Steve finished the slice of pizza, brushing the crumbs off of his mouth and shirt.

"Alright. Take me to see Howard." He told Tony firmly. The older man sighed, hopping off the kitchen counter where he'd been sitting. "Yeah, alright. Good luck breaking his concentration though. He's in the workroom." Tony said with a bitter eye roll.

"I'm sure I can catch his attention." Steve reassured him with a small smile. Tony grabbed his wrist, leading him to a downwards staircase, that looked like it lead to some sort of basement. "This is his work headquarters. He builds weapons." Tony explained as he lead Steve down the staircase.

The first thing Steve saw in the room was a frail old man, bent over a workbench. He appeared to be completely absorbed in his task, only stopping when Steve loudly cleared his throat. "Yes? What do you want?" the old man asked, focusing on Tony. "Grandpa…this is Steve. The time traveler. He finally got here. I guess he's a little late to the party." Tony said. The old man shifted his gaze to Steve. "Oh my god." He said softly. "I really did do it. You're here. You're just like I remember." He said excitedly.

The elderly Howard rushed over to Steve, giving him a tight hug. "Welcome to the future, Steve. You'll like it here." He said


	3. Nostalgia

Howard ushered Steve and Tony over to his workbench, motioning for the both of then to sit down on one of the stools. Steve sat down immediately, but Tony stayed standing. "So…" Steve began. "What did I miss over the last 70 years?" he asked.

The question was directed to Howard, but Tony butted in with "Rock and roll, Star Wars and a black president." He said. Steve raised an eyebrow. "Really? We have a black president?" he asked with a smile. Tony nodded. "Huh. Good for us." He said.

Howard shot Tony a glare. "I'm trying to catch up with an old friend, Tony." He said sternly. Steve laughed at Tony's kicked puppy look. Howard rolled his eyes. "That one's even more of a punk than you were." He teased. Tony made a face.

"Besides, I highly doubt he can give you the highlights of the last 70 years. He's only 22." He said with a laugh. Steve smirked. "Well I'm only 17." He replied with a shrug.

Howard laughed bitterly. "I know. You're just the way I remember you. I got old." He said. "But…I've been preparing for you. I have a room all set up." He said. Steve grinned. "Really? I hope you didn't go to too much trouble…" he said.

Howard shook his head. "No, no trouble." He assured him. "Listen, Steve. I've got to get some work done. Why don't I have Tony show you your room?" he suggested.

Tony sighed dramatically, grabbing Steve's wrist and pulling him off the stool. "Yeah, alright. Come on, Marty Mcfly." He said with a smirk. Steve stared in confusion. "My name is Steve Rogers." He said, as if Tony had forgotten it. The older man chuckled. "Yeah, I got that. It was supposed to be a joke but…I guess they didn't have the Back to the Future movies in the 40's, did they?" he said, feeling a bit awkward as he lead Steve to his room. "No, they didn't. At least I assume they didn't. I've never heard of it." He said. "Wish I could ask Bucky. He's the one who knew about that kind of thing." He said.

"There's that name again. Bucky. Who's Bucky?" Tony asked, glancing quizzically at the blond man. Steve blushed lightly. "Sorry. …I talk about him a lot. Can't help it," he said awkwardly. "Bucky is short for James Buchanan Barnes. He is- well…he was my best friend back in the 40's." Steve explained "My only friend, actually, besides Peggy and Howard. But Howard was 10 years older and Peggy was…well, it was different with Peggy." He said, not bothering to explain.

When they arrived at the room, Tony opened the door with a dramatic sweeping gesture. "Here you go. Home sweet Home, Rogers." He said. Steve smiled, entering the room and going to sit on the bed. "This is really nice." He said, almost in awe. Tony smirked. "I try." He said smugly. Steve sighed, reaching into his pockets and pulling out his old photographs and birth certificate and lying them down on the bed.

"What are those?" Tony asked, walking over to the bed to examine the photographs. There was one of Steve and his parents when he was little, and one of Steve, Bucky and Peggy taken just a year before he'd been sent to 2014. Tony studied the pictures. "Is that Bucky and Peggy?" he asked. Steve nodded. "She's kind of cute." He commented. "Did you two ever…" he trailed off, raising his eyebrows suggestively. Steve rolled his eyes. "She was my girlfriend, if that's what you're implying." He replied.

Tony laughed. "Wait, really? You and her? Damn. Nice going Steve. How'd you manage that?" he asked, seemingly impressed. Steve sighed. "I don't know. We've been friends since we were 3, everyone just sort of…expected us to fall in love. So two years back, when I was about 15…I asked her to go steady." He explained with a shrug, not meeting Tony's eyes.

Tony raised an eyebrow. "And did you?" he asked. "I mean…did you fall in love." He explained, at Steve's confused look. The younger man blushed furiously. "Well…no." He admitted. "I always cared for her but as a friend." He said. Tony sat down on the bed. "Really? It seems like it'd be pretty difficult to not feel anything for a girl like that." He said. Steve sighed, biting his lip. "I suppose." He said quietly. 'What was wrong with her? Just not your type?" Tony asked. Steve bit his lip." You could say that. And…I actually had feelings for someone else." He admitted softly. Tony nodded. "I see." He said softly. "Are you going to miss them?" He asked

"I didn't really think about it until you just said that." He admitted. "But….yes. I think I will." He said


	4. Education

As soon as Tony left the room, Steve fell asleep. It wasn't even late, 7o'clock at the most, but he supposed that his little journey had exhausted him. Shockingly, he didn't dream that night. Perhaps it was the distance between his old life and this new world, but his recurring nightmares of his mother's death didn't touch him once.

The next morning, Steve woke up to music that could only be described as 'loud' blasting from the room next to his, Tony's presumably. Steve sat up groggily, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he remembered where he was once again. The future.

He crawled out of bed, grabbing the blanket and wrapping it around himself to protect him from the cold. He stumbled into the kitchen, to see Tony idly flipping pancakes over the stove, wearing nothing but boxer shorts. Steve blushed, staring at him in confusion as the older man flipped one of the pancakes. "Tony." He finally said, somewhat nervously.

The dark haired man jerked in shock, spinning around to meet Steve's eyes. "Jesus, Rogers!" he exclaimed. "Warn a guy next time." He said. "S-sorry." Steve muttered, not meeting Tony's eyes. "I…I was just-" he trailed off. "What, just admiring the view?" he teased. Steve blushed furiously. "What? No. I was just…I mean- you woke me up with your music." He said defensively. Tony gave him an apologetic smile. "Sorry, Steve. I was just…getting ready for class." He explained

Steve raised an eyebrow. "Class?" he asked. Tony nodded. "Yeah. I take classes at the local college. I just live here." He explained. Steve gave him a smile. "Really? What's college like?" he asked. Tony rolled his eyes. "Tiring." Steve chuckled to himself. Finally, after a pause he asked, "Can I come?"

Tony gave him a look of skepticism. "Um…I guess. If you want. Professor probably wouldn't notice. Why would you want to?" he asked incredulously. "Well…I graduated high school early, just a few months ago." He explained. "And I was planning to go on to the army afterwards, to help with the war effort but…there's no war anymore." He explained softly.

Tony smirked. "Yeah, guess not. We won, if that makes you feel any better." He said. Steve smiled. "It kind of does, actually." He admitted. "Great. So you're not going to come to my school then?" he said hopefully. "I'm definitely coming now that you said that." He replied with a smirk. Tony rolled his eyes. "Dickhead." He grumbled. Steve gave him a confused, embarrassed look. "Sorry, what did you just call me?" he asked incredulously. "You heard me, dickhead." Tony replied, looking back at his pancakes, which were now beginning to burn.

Steve shook his head in disgust, and went off to find Howard to ask if he could go to school with Tony. His days of Howard watching him while his mother was away hadn't worn off.

He knocked on the door to the basement workshop quietly, hoping he wasn't disturbing Howard. "Steve? Come in" he called. Steve obliged, walking into the workshop. "Hello Howard." He said with a smile. "I was just…wondering if it would be alright if I went to school with Tony today." He said, giving Howard a hopeful look. Howard have him a small smile. "Well I don't see why not." He said. "Although I would advise you not to take anything Tony tells you about modern school too seriously. He likes to tease." Howard said. Steve nodded. "Don't worry." He said "I'll be fine."


End file.
